Would there be any upside to me switching from Abilify to Seroquel? I think the abilify is making me feel wired etc.

Abilify made me more hypomanic than I'd ever been, so there was an advantage for me. I was on Seroquel and switched to Abilify a couple of years back to try to avoid the sedation, and BOY did I get more than I wished for. So had to switch back. I miss my mornings, but I'm in whatever works mode these days.

There is nothing more controversial than the use of antidepressants (Lexapro) in bipolar disorder, as you may know. I follow the school of thought that antidepressants should be used only as a last resort and only in combination with a mood stabilizer. I also hold to the strict definition of "mood stabilizer." Abilify isn't really a mood stabilizer in those terms. I think Seroquel would be a fantastic choice, there is evidence for its use in bipolar depression and for prevention of recurrence of any mood episode. It will make you sleepy, but many people adjust.

Lexapro and the Abilify could both be making you "wired." Perhaps you will find your panic and anxiety symptoms will diminish (and your need for the Xanax) if you eliminate those activating/destabilizing drugs.

I have been taking Seroquel since 2000 and it saved my life. It cleared my head and handled my depression very well. When I had to quit lithium for health reasons, the Seroquel kept me sane. Yes, it is sedating, so my pdoc adjusted it from 400 MG to 300 MG. He just tried me on Abilify. I kind of liked it, but it was making it hard to sleep. My wife said I was getting manic and irritable, which is my tendency...so I have stopped the Abilify. I was taking 1 MG for a week, 2 MG for a week, then 5 MG this past week. But like people have said, everybody is different.

I am going to try taking Seroquel earlier in the evening to make it easier to get up in the morning, like someone said in this forum. I couldn't before because it would knock me out, but now I am on a lower dosage. Make sure your pdoc orders blood tests every few months because, like any med, Seroquel and Abilify are hard on your body. No problems so far...good luck!

There is nothing more controversial than the use of antidepressants (Lexapro) in bipolar disorder, as you may know. I follow the school of thought that antidepressants should be used only as a last resort and only in combination with a mood stabilizer. I also hold to the strict definition of "mood stabilizer." Abilify isn't really a mood stabilizer in those terms. I think Seroquel would be a fantastic choice, there is evidence for its use in bipolar depression and for prevention of recurrence of any mood episode. It will make you sleepy, but many people adjust.

Lexapro and the Abilify could both be making you "wired." Perhaps you will find your panic and anxiety symptoms will diminish (and your need for the Xanax) if you eliminate those activating/destabilizing drugs.

I'm in agreeance with this wholeheartedly. Abilify can be activating and though it is indicated for the maintenance of bipolar, can very easily send people into mania (raises hand). I become very agitated and angry, unprovoked. Seroquel on the other hand is more likely to calm you down, get you some sleep (maybe more than you want, but hey, it feels good after being wired). Antidepressants are scary without mood stabilizers so before you continue with the Lex, you might want to get on Seroquel or a better mood stabilizer than Abilify.

I was on Lexapro and it made me hypomanic at 10 mg and even more hypomanic at 20 mg (maybe manic? idk). Lexapro was bad, as stated without a mood stabilizer it can get funky.

I would suggest taking of Lexapro first... or adding Seroquel. Abilify can be activating too, as it is for me right now. Like the poster above me said, it makes me extremely irritable and agitated but I was on it before so I assume it will go away soon.